Sensor device and method for arranging a sensor device on a mounting plate

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a sensor device containing a housing ( 1 ) and a spring element ( 9 ) comprising a guiding element ( 5 ) for displacing the sensor device over a mounting plate ( 7 ) in a guided manner. Said guiding element ( 5 ) co-operates with a guiding means ( 12 ) of the mounting plate ( 7 ). In a mounting position of the sensor device, said sensor device engages in the mounting plate ( 7 ) and is fixed to the same.

The present invention relates to a sensor device and a method for arranging a sensor device on a mounting plate of a motor vehicle.

Airbag and belt-tightener units are important passenger-restraining means for protecting motor vehicle passengers in the event of an accident involving a frontal or side impact. Signals from sensor devices are used for deciding when to release the airbag or belt-tightener unit. Acceleration sensor devices, in particular, are fitted centrally in the airbag controller or non-centrally at another point in the vehicle. Central is deemed here to refer in particular to the position in the housing of an airbag controller which is usually fitted under the central console in the motor vehicle. Consequently, any fitting of a control or sensor device outside the airbag controller is referred to as non-central or external. Non-central sensor devices are therefore often referred to as airbag satellites or simply as satellites.

It is important in the case of acceleration sensor devices, in particular, to achieve a mechanically highly rigid coupling of the airbag satellite with the vehicle body. If this does not exist, the mechanical transfer function between satellite and vehicle body changes, and the satellite transmits in part falsified signals. For mounting external airbag controllers, in the main metallic mounting plates, on which the satellites are rigidly fastened by means of screws and counter screws, are fitted in the motor vehicle.

The sensor signals are evaluated in the airbag satellites themselves or in the central airbag controller by algorithms which have to be adapted for each vehicle type. The computational results of the algorithms are from time to time very different for different mounting locations. Especially in the case of acceleration sensor devices, it is therefore particularly important to mount the airbag satellites reproducibly at the same point on the vehicle body, since only in this way can the same evaluation of an impact event be guaranteed for all the vehicles in a vehicle line. Special mounting aids and mounting procedures which prevent any incorrect positioning of an airbag satellite are therefore used in production in the automotive industry.

FIGS. 5 a and 5 b show a known mounting aid in the form of a mounting cover 3 which is placed on a housing 1 of an airbag satellite. FIG. 5 a shows the airbag satellite before installation in the motor vehicle. In this arrangement, the fastening screws 4 cannot be tightened, as the mounting cover prevents access with a mounting tool. Only in the installation position intended for that purpose, as shown in FIG. 5 b, can the satellite be fastened to a mounting support.

FIGS. 6 a and 6 b show the same two arrangements of the satellite on a mounting plate 7, viewed from the back.

The two FIGS. 6 a and 6 b illustrate the known method for mounting an airbag satellite:

-   -   The housing 1 is placed on a mounting plate 7 using a         positioning aid 8 (FIG. 6 a).     -   The housing 1 of the satellite is then displaced in the         direction of the arrow (FIG. 6 b).     -   The satellite is then fastened to the mounting plate 7 through         the cooperation of mounting means.

A disadvantage of this known mounting aid is the two-part formation of housing and the mounting aid, in particular a mounting cover. The use of two separate components in the production of an airbag satellite entails a high additional logistical outlay. This comprises the handling of a greater number of components and an additional process step in which a housing and a mounting cover have to be assembled.

The object of the invention is to enable reproducible positioning of an airbag satellite in a motor vehicle with high positioning accuracy appropriate to its use. This object is achieved in the features of claim 1.

The sensor device according to the invention contains in addition to its housing a spring element with a guiding element arranged thereon, the two of which together replace the known mounting cover.

A guiding element refers here to any type of construction which can engage in a guiding means, in particular a lug into a through recess of a mounting plate.

On the other hand, the guiding element can conversely be fashioned such that, when being mounted, a guiding means of the mounting plate engages in the recess of the sensor device, in particular a lug of the mounting plate into a cavity in the housing.

A sensor device with a guiding element on a mounting plate according to one of the two proposed designs can preferably be displaced only in the direction which is predetermined by the guiding means.

An advantageous further development of the invention is this spring element with its guiding element as a part of the housing, in particular of a housing made of plastic or metal. The described disadvantage of the mounting cover can be avoided by means of the achievement of the object according to the invention. Compared with manufacture of a sensor device having a mounting aid comprising two parts, production is simplified substantially.

The subclaims relate to embodiments and further developments of the idea behind the invention.

The formation according to the invention of the sensor device enables a simple method for arranging a sensor device on a mounting plate, as shown in the independent method claim 12.

Embodiments of the invention are described in detail below with reference to schematic diagrams, in which

FIGS. 1 a and 1 b show a perspective view from two sides of a sensor device according to the invention,

FIGS. 2 a and 2 b show the sensor device according to FIGS. 1 a and 1 b on a mounting plate in an initial position and in a final position,

FIGS. 3 a and 3 b show the sensor device according to FIGS. 2 a and 2 b from a different viewpoint,

FIG. 4 shows a sensor device according to the invention on a mounting plate with an alternative formation of the guiding means for a simplified method for displacing the satellite to the mounting position,

FIGS. 5 a and 5 b show a perspective view of a known sensor device with a mounting cover in an initial position and in a final position,

FIGS. 6 a and 6 b show the known sensor device according to FIGS. 5 a and 5 b from a different viewpoint, and

FIG. 7 shows a sensor device according to the invention on a mounting plate with a spring element arranged on the mounting plate for an alternative method for engaging the satellite in the mounting position.

The same elements and components of the embodiments are labeled in the Figures below by means of the same reference symbols.

The sensor device is referred to below also as an airbag satellite or satellite.

FIG. 1 a shows a sensor device comprising a housing 1 and comprising a spring element 9 with a guiding element 5. The spring element 9 has two substantially parallel spring bars 11, the ends of which are fashioned in one direction as guiding lugs. These are suitable for engaging as a guiding element 5 in recesses of a mounting plate 7 fashioned as a guiding means 12. An arrangement is deemed substantially parallel here in which the two spring bars 11 form preferably no angle to one another, but at most an angle of 15 degrees.

In order to protect the spring bars 11 against mechanical overload when deflected, a further part of the spring bars 11 serves as a spring tension limiter 13.

The two ends of the spring bars 11 are connected to one another via an elastic connecting bridge 10.

As an advantageous further development of the invention, the spring bars 11 with the guiding lugs 5 and the connecting bridge 10 are in the embodiment fashioned in one piece with the housing 1 of the sensor device. The sensor device consists therefore of fewer components, as a result of which the outlay in respect of production and assembly is reduced.

Fastening screws 4 are also to be seen as mounting means. These are suitable for cooperating with the corresponding counter screws as mounting counter means so that the satellite can be fastened on a mounting support in the motor vehicle. Alternative mounting means are combinations of fastening screws and screw threads or other mechanically rigid forms of connection such as snap-on connections, riveted joints, etc. Fastening screws and screw threads find the necessary counter-hold on the opposite side of a mounting plate in the form of mounting counter means, in particular counter screws, screw nuts and screw heads.

FIGS. 2 a, 2 b, 3 a and 3 b show an airbag satellite on a mounting plate 7 from the front and from the back respectively. The back here refers to the side of the airbag satellite facing the mounting plate. The arrangement of the satellite on the mounting plate 7 is explained with reference to these Figures:

After insertion of the satellite, the guiding lugs 5 engage in the guiding means 12 of the mounting plate 7 (FIG. 2 a). The satellite is thereafter brought into the mounting position. This can be done manually or mechanically. Displacement takes place in the direction of the arrow. In this mounting position, the fastening screws 4 are tightened with the aid of a mounting tool (FIG. 2 b).

FIGS. 3 a and 3 b show the same arrangements from the back. Counter-screws 6 in FIG. 3 b as a mounting counter means of fastening screws 4 from FIG. 2 a are arranged over a tapering of the two guiding means 12 such that, screwed down, they can provide the air bag satellite with the necessary hold.

In the case of the acceleration sensor device (the airbag satellite) described thus far, the housing 1 can be fashioned such that access with a mounting tool to the fastening screws 4 and fastening of the airbag satellite is possible only in its mounting position. This is achieved by means of the elastic connecting bridge 10.

As shown in the embodiment according to FIG. 2 a, the connecting bridge 10 is arranged between the deflectable ends of the two parallel spring bars 11.

The connecting bridge 10 is deflected in an end position as shown in FIG. 2 a. Access to the fastening screw 4 which lies nearest to the connecting bridge is thereby prevented.

In its rest position, shown in FIG. 2 b, the elastic connecting bridge is deflected only to the extent that access with a mounting tool to the fastening screw is possible.

The housing of a sensor device according to the present invention is manufactured for the most part from plastic. Like any material, plastic can be deformed without breaking only up to a maximum mechanical loading. In order, in the embodiment according to FIGS. 1 a and 1 b, to protect the connecting bridge 10 and the spring bars 11 against too high a mechanical loading (and in particular against material failure) a spring tension limiter 13 is provided. This is fashioned in the form of mechanical lugs on both sides of the ends of the spring bars 11.

As shown in the embodiment, it is advantageous to fashion the spring bars 11, the connecting bridge 10 and the spring tension limiter 13 as one piece with the housing 1. The sensor device then comprises fewer components, as a result of which the cost of manufacture and assembly is reduced.

The method for mounting an airbag satellite is described below with reference to FIGS. 2 a and 2 b:

The sensor device is first inserted with a guiding element, for example with the guiding lugs 5 on the spring element 9, into the guiding means 12 of the mounting plate 7 (cf. FIG. 2 a).

The sensor device is then displaced over the mounting plate 7, whereby the direction of displacement is predetermined by the guiding means 12 (direction of arrow in FIG. 2 a). This can be effected manually or automatically.

In the mounting position of the airbag satellite, the guiding element 5 of the sensor device engages in the guiding means 12 of the mounting plate 7 (see FIG. 2 b).

The airbag satellite is then rigidly fastened on the mounting plate 7 with a mounting means.

When the satellite is displaced, the spring element 9 and in particular its spring bars 11 are deformed. In the mounting position, the spring bars 11 relax as the guiding lugs 5 engage in the guiding means 12 of the mounting plate 7 (see FIG. 2 b).

In an alternative method, a spring element is arranged on the mounting plate 7. The guiding element 5 of the airbag satellite can in this case be fashioned rigidly:

FIG. 7 shows an airbag satellite on a mounting plate 7 on which a spring element 14 is arranged. If the satellite is displaced in the direction of the arrow, the spring element 14 is deformed until the guiding lugs 5 have been guided past said spring element. The satellite is then engaged in its mounting position.

The airbag satellite is then rigidly fastened on the mounting plate 7 with a mounting means.

In a further embodiment of the method, access of a mounting tool to the mounting means 4 and fastening of the airbag satellite on the mounting plate 7 are enabled only in the mounting position of the airbag satellite. The principle is explained using FIGS. 2 a and 2 b: the connecting bridge 10 of the spring element 9 of the sensor device is deflected to an end position (see FIG. 2 a), but rests in a rest position (see FIG. 2 b).

A mounting tool can access the mounting means 4 of the sensor device either in the end position or rest position of the spring element 9 and fasten the satellite rigidly on the mounting plate 7.

The spring element 9 does not have to be fully deflected, for example until a mechanical stopping point is reached, in the end position. The end position and the rest position of the connecting bridge 10 are characterized rather by the fact that access to the mounting means 4 and fastening of the airbag satellite on the mounting plate are either enabled or prevented.

The connecting bridge 10 preferably prevents access of a mounting tool to the mounting means 4 during displacement of the airbag satellite over the mounting plate 7 to the mounting position. Only in the mounting position can a mounting tool then access the mounting means 4 and fasten the airbag satellite rigidly on the mounting plate 7.

In the method according to the invention the satellite has to be actively displaced, either mechanically or manually. Alternatively, the guiding means 12 can be formed such that the guided displacement of the airbag satellite is driven by the spring tension of the preloaded spring element 9. A possible arrangement is shown in FIG. 4.

In order to insert the airbag satellite into the guiding means 12, the spring element 9 has to be mechanically preloaded. The guiding means 12 of the satellite are arranged obliquely relative to the direction of the arrow such that the spring tension of the spring element 9 and of the elastic connecting bridge 10 is released as a result of the spring element 9 moving to the mounting position. After insertion of the spring element 9 into the guiding means 12 the airbag satellite therefore moves without any further external assistance to its mounting position until the guiding element 5 engages with the mounting plate 7. The airbag satellite is fastened in this position.

The sensor device according to the invention and the method according to the invention for arranging a sensor device are described here only with reference to an airbag satellite. However, the invention covers all sensor devices which are arranged on a mounting plate and corresponding methods for their arrangement. 

1. A sensor device comprising a housing (1), comprising a spring element (9) consisting of at least two spring bars arranged substantially parallel (11) which has a guiding element (5) for displacing the sensor device over a mounting plate (7) in a guided manner, wherein the guiding element (7) is fashioned to cooperate with a guiding means (12) of the mounting plate (7), and comprising a mounting means (4) on the housing (1) for arranging the sensor device on the mounting plate (7) with the aid of a mounting tool, characterized in that an elastic connecting bridge (10) is arranged between the two spring bars (11), wherein access to the mounting means (4) with a mounting tool is prevented in a deflected position of the spring bars (11) by the connecting bridge (10), whereas such access is enabled with the spring bars (11) in a released position, and in the mounting position of the sensor device the spring bars (11) are in their released position.
 2. A sensor device according to claim 1, characterized in that the spring element (9), and preferably also the connecting bridge (10), is fashioned as one piece with the housing (1).
 3. A sensor device according to claim 2, characterized in that the elastic connecting bridge (10) is arranged between the deflectable ends of at least two spring bars (11).
 4. A sensor device according to claim 1, characterized in that the spring element (9) has a spring tension limiter (13).
 5. A sensor device according to claim 4, characterized in that the spring tension limiter (13) is fashioned in the form of mechanical stops on both sides of the ends of the spring bars (11).
 6. A method for arranging a sensor device according to claim 1 on a mounting plate (7), wherein the sensor device has a spring element (9) which comprises a guiding element (5) for displacing the sensor device over the mounting plate (7) in a guided manner, and wherein the guiding element (7) is fashioned for cooperating with a guiding means (12) of the mounting plate (7), in which the sensor device is inserted with its guiding element (5) into the guiding means (12), is displaced along the guiding means (12) over the mounting plate (7) in a guided manner, in a mounting position of the sensor device engages with its guiding element (5) in the guiding means (12) of the mounting plate (7) and is fastened on the mounting plate (7) in the mounting position with a mounting means (4), characterized in that the spring element (9) in a deflected position prevents access with a mounting tool to the mounting means (4) of the sensor device, whereas such access is enabled when the spring element is in a released position.
 7. A method according to claim 6 characterized in that 